


Jet Black Hearts 1.02: Haley Collins

by voleuse



Series: Jet Black Hearts [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-20
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:34:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27125272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voleuse/pseuds/voleuse
Summary: Haley Collinsused to like the forest.
Series: Jet Black Hearts [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1979008
Kudos: 6





	Jet Black Hearts 1.02: Haley Collins

**Author's Note:**

> Set after SPN 1.02, "Wendigo."

Tommy shoved all their hiking gear into the attic once he got back from the hospital.

***

Haley had never been one for nightmares. Not when their mom died, not after their dad faded away, and not after the...whatever happened in the woods. No, she was always wide awake when her fears clamped down on her. She would lie in bed, wide awake, flinching at the clatter of a branch against the roof, or the creak of a window. Ben would be playing video games way past midnight, and the faint squeals of pixelated victims would set her teeth on edge.

Nights were deep, intentional breaths and the jitter of nerves that wouldn't stop firing. Days, Haley would go to work in an insomniac haze, thankful when her manager would take pity and send her to the back to do inventory. 

Haley kept her shit together because she had to--because she was always the one who kept her shit together. She got Ben through his nightmares and his the fights he got into at school. She didn't even hesitate when Tommy told her he didn't mind if she and Ben ate burgers and whatever, but he couldn't deal with finding the meat in the fridge.

***

One night after working a double shift, Haley came home to find Tommy sitting on the sofa, staring at the muted TV.

"Hey," she said. She circled around the sofa so he could see her approach. "You okay?"

"Yeah." Tommy smiled, or something like it. "You know."

"Yeah." She settled down next to him, bumped her shoulder against his. They stared at the TV together for a while. It was some game show she didn't recognize, but pretty quickly understood. The thrum and crash of Ben's game were a quiet hum in the background.

"He's gonna graduate soon," Tommy noted. "Think he'll want to stick around here?"

Haley bit her lip. "I hope so," she said. "But we can talk about it."

The game show ended and some talk show began. Haley realized she hadn't been to the movies in months.

Tommy cleared his throat. "Maybe we should move somewhere," he said. "I could ask my boss for a transfer."

Haley looked around the room. At the family photos on the TV and the wallpaper Mom had chosen. She sighed. She smiled.

"Maybe somewhere near a beach."


End file.
